Some Of My Top Citizen Preparedness-Related Songs — Please Suggest Your Own

Over the past few years working on the issue of public preparedness and engagement, I have found myself noting songs and lyrics I’ve heard that I think touch on related themes. Last year, I posted videos fromÂ YouTube (along with some selected lyrics) of four songs that I find particularly resonant and representative of the ideas raised in this blog. (These songs also provided me with inspiration during the past eight months as I deal with leukemia.)

I am pretty sure that none of these songs were written about civilian preparedness, but I think each relates in some way to the need for citizens to be ready to react and respond to whatever emergencies we face individually, as a nation and as a planet. After I listen to these songs, I find myself getting charged up about doing something. When I initially wrote this post, the Utah Commission on Volunteers’ Lani Nisbet and the Oregon Red Cross’ Robin Parker offered their own songs which I have added at the bottom of this post.

IfÂ you have suggestions for other songs that you think also relate to citizen preparedness, please write them in the Comments section or email me at jsolomon@incaseofemergencyblog.com and I will post them:

1) Five For Fighting, “World”Â –Â ”What kind of world do you want/Â Think anything/Let’s start at the start/Build a masterpiece/Be careful what you wish for/History starts now.”

2) Patti Smith, “People Have The Power”Â –”The people have the power/The people have the power/The power to dream /to rule/to wrestle the world from fools/it’s decreed the people rule/it’s decreed the people rule/I believe everything we dream/can come to pass through our union/we can turn the world around/we can turn the earth’s revolution/we have the power/People have the power.”

3) The Eagles, “New York Minute”Â – “In a New York minute/Everything can change/In a New York minute things can get a little strange…And in these days/When darkness falls early/And people rush home/To the ones they love/You better take a fool’s advice/And take care of your own/One day they’re here/Next day they’re gone.”

4) Foo Fighters, “Times Like These” — “It’s times like these you learn to live again/it’s times like these you give and give again/it’s times like these you learn to love again/it’s times like these time and time again.”

3 responses so far ↓

First song that came to my mind is “Jerusalem”, which is sort of an
unofficial English anthem. Often sung at English soccer games and was
an often sung at Women’s Institutes meetings. for The latter half
does talk about preparing & persevering.
< <
[...]
Bring me my bow of burning gold:
Bring me my arrows of desire:
Bring me my spear: O clouds unfold!
Bring me my chariot of fire.

I will not cease from mental fight,
Nor shall my sword sleep in my hand
Till we have built Jerusalem
In England's green and pleasant land.

By the way, one of the lines is the basis for the title of the movie
"Chariots of Fire".

I don’t know if many others would see this as a citizen preparedness
song. It is quite rooted in England’s culture, especially one for
non-English. Also, the song has strong church hymn overtones and some
Christian references. (The first half refers to an old English
legend.)